Three Leaf Clovers
by theforgotten09
Summary: Three always means you're lucky, right? Rated M for language and content.
1. Beginner's Luck

**Disclaimer:**

I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All proper respects go to Square Enix and Disney and Co. All non-cannon characters are created by me.

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**Prologue:**

Rayne always felt a little off about Destiny Islands. Perhaps she had some sort of premonition, but her being a regular human kind of made that null. Her green eyes took in her surroundings: palm trees, blue skies, green grass. Her best friends Keri and Jade stood with her on the hill overlooking the lone island several hundred meters from the mainland.

"Onee-chan", Jade said quietly, "do you feel that?" Rayne turned to her chocolate-skinned friend and replied with a nod.

"Keri?" Rayne asked the other girl who had red hair and tired dreamy eyes. Keri simply nodded and kept her eyes fixed on the horizon. The summer was on the verge of beginning and all three young girls with their young impressionable minds felt the tugging of Destiny on their hearts.

...

**Jade:**

Jade Genesis was a reasonable child. Her mind was a bit older than her peers, but her heart and body were the same as any child's. Her brown eyes took in everything she saw and experienced. At the tender age of four, her journey to Destiny would begin with an unremarkable insignificant object: Thalassa Shells.

She and her two comrades, Keri and Rayne, were visiting the island with the daycare supervisors. Their class consisted of several children around the same age (4 and 5 respectively). The teacher showed them around the island, showing them different creatures and features surrounding them.

"Now this children, is a paopou fruit," the teacher began showing them the peculiar star-shaped fruit. Jade took no interest in what she was saying. She'd much rather be doing something else. Her eyes wandered around the sand and came across a seashell. Carefully she picked it up and placed it in the pocket of her dress she wore.

"I saw that," said a boy whose name she remembered as Riku, "I'm going to tell the teacher."

"Why?" Jade asked simply, undaunted by the slightly older boy. "Do you want it?" she asked. Riku looked at her, suddenly unsure of what to say. After a brief moment he shook his head, suddenly realizing he had nothing to say on it. Jade, understanding her small victory, silently rejoiced in her head.

She found several more over the course of the day and placed each one in her pocket. They'd make nice gifts for her family and friends. Once they were on mainland she showed her friends.

"Those are pretty, how did you get them?" Keri asked, softly touching a shell. She was amazed at Jade's skill for hiding things.

"I was quiet and careful, but Riku almost caught me," she explained. At the sound of Riku's name, Rayne suddenly came to attention.

"How'd you get him to stop?" she asked, green eyes all aglow.

"I don't know. I just asked him if he wanted a shell, and he said no." The girl had seen Rayne's reaction and was sure that then and there, Rayne's Red String of Destiny had a possible lead.

**Keri**:

Keri was a simple child. Not stupid in the least. She had simple thought patters, simple tastes, and simple desires. She was quite a daydreamer, sometimes drifting off in the middle of playtime. Not that her "sisters" minded. Both she and Rayne were big sleepers and appreciated afternoon naps. Jade was more active and frequently stayed up late.

She was friends with Sora-who was also a big dreamer as well. They both got caught napping at odd times and were chastised for it by their teachers. But still, they were well-liked among their peers. There was only one slight conflict Keri faced; and that was Kairi.

Keri didn't hate Kairi. Kairi hated how alike they looked and how both of their names began with a K.

"Ugh, why can't you look different from me!?" Kairi said a bit too loudly at the coloring table. Keri just looked at her, unsure of what to say. Keri didn't think they looked alike. They didn't wear the same dresses or wear their hair the same way. She had no clue what the issue might be. Sora tried telling her that the two girls didn't look alike to no avail.

Keri just shrugged and went back to her coloring, the matter seemed to be forgotten. But it seemed to be a source of...issues between the two girls.

"I don't get why she's so mad," Keri blurted one day, "I don't look a thing like her! And she still got mad when I let her sit next to Sora!"All three girls had become tired of Kairi's complex or whatever it was that bothered her. They were children. Who wanted to waste time on such things when there was so much else to look at?

"Just ignore her," Rayne said, "It'll go away soon." Keri sighed, hoping that Rayne was right.

**Rayne**:

Rayne was a rebellious child, not in great favor of rules. Taking naps was fine, but she preferred her own way of doing things. She tried to run away from daycare many times before. Usually Jade would remark on how useless her antics were, but Rayne tried anyway.

The poor child was restless as it were. Fidgeting, moving, not wanting to do what she was told simply because she wanted to do different. Keri remarked on her behavior , saying that she was going to get in trouble for it. But Rayne hardly listened, continuing her patterns.

She was inquisitive, always wanting to know why. Why she had rules. Why did she have to be in school. Where there other worlds out there? Riku shared her inquiries. No one else seemed to understand her. But Riku did. He shared her mind, not understanding the world. Jade tried to understand her, but even she had limits to her fair understanding. Rayne wanted to leave the island and move on to greater things, wanting to grow up in a hurry. Her parents said to wait, but to her, waiting was not going to be good enough.

...

The three girls spent more and more time on the island as they grew up. The boys, usually consisting of Tidus, Wakka, Sora, and Riku; spent their time play-fighting as they didn't know how to spar yet. Selphie, Rayne, Keri, Kairi, Jade, and some other girls collected shells and talked, playing in the water from time to time.

Jade watched the boys fight and wanted to join them, wondering why they turned her away every time she came with a toy sword. Riku and Wakka said it was because she was a girl and would need rescuing. Jade didn't understand this reasoning. She would try to copy their moves on her own, wishing she had someone to fight. Rayne on the other hand, enjoyed watching Riku fight and joined Jade on the rocks. Eventually all the other girls joined them, cheering on their chosen champions.

Keri however, wandered into the shade too tired to cheer. "Why aren't you with your friends?" an adult female voice asked. Keri opened her tired eyes to see a lady with blue hair smiling back at her. She sat up promptly and yawned. "I was just tired," the little girl replied, "Jade checked up on me a moment ago." The lady smiled and sat down next to her.

"What's your name little one?" she asked kindly.

"I'm Keri, what's your name lady?" she replied. The blue-haired woman let out a laugh. The child's brute and simple honesty was quite amusing.

"My name is Aqua," she said with a smile. From that moment on, Keri felt just a little bit different in the best way imaginable.

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**Explanations****:**

**I'm trying to avoid using unnecessary words and descriptions here. Jade, Keri, and Rayne frequently refer to each other as "****onee-chan" or "_-nee" showing their sisterhood and how they look out for each other. This is in NO way an attempt to add the Japanese language to my writing style. Think of it as a verbal tic. I also have some grammatical problems dotting my work, usually having to deal with my lack of semi-colon use. Please forgive me. Yes, Jade is black. That is all that will be said on the subject.**

**I would like to describe outfits, but I don't want to get into purple prose when it comes to that, so I'll post pics on my deviant art page of what they wear.**


	2. Not So Lucky

**DISCLAIMER: **I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Disney. All copyrights go to their respective owners. All non-canon characters are my domain! I would think that since I'm writing fan fiction, everyone here would assume that I DON'T own this franchise...

* * *

Growing up sucked. Rayne, Keri, and Jade all hated it to some degree. Adjusting to their growing bodies was hard in some cases. General awkwardness abounded and no one was exempt from it. Even the ever popular Riku had that in-between look about him. In a short note, blossoming was not a lovely process.

**Rayne:**

She had always been a tiny girl. But come puberty she noticed she didn't get much taller. Sometimes this caused problems, especially with the little weight gain that came with it. She enjoyed sleeping more often and drank tea all the time.

Periods sucked infinite ass. Especially when she got it right after her gym class. She was completely unprepared and sat in the bathroom stall wondering what she should do. After a classmate helped her out, she went on through the rest of the day irritable. Bra sizes were kind of weird. SHe hated getting a bigger chest because she couldn't run or be as nimble as she used to. Fitting into small places was no longer possible.

Ballet, however, helped her become graceful. The stretches, turns, and leaps helped her even out the pros and cons of growing up. She especially liked it when Riku would come to her recitals and pick her up after practice. "You were great", he would always tell her with a smile. SHe couldn't wait for the day he'd ask her out. It was right around the corner. She just knew it.

Her friends on the other hand, didn't quite agree. Jade seemed suspicious, maybe even a little scared of Riku. This was funny because she was almost his height, what was so scary about him. Keri thought he was mean and could possibly be a bully. But neither girl mentioned their suspicion more than just that one time and supported her with their best wishes.

**Keri:**

If any girl hated puberty it was Keri. The changes were (in her opinion) awful. On top of putting on weight, her bra size expanded and was a source of embarrassment. It didn't help that guys stared. Even poor Sora wasn't exempt from typical male behavior. He could hardly look at Keri straight in the eye and always looked everywhere except for her face. The guy really didn't want to get caught staring.

Riku had the nerve to make fun of her for it the day her too-small uniform shirt popped a button.

"If you weren't so fat, maybe your shirts would fit", he said with a mean laugh. Keri was shocked and embarrassed, turning red in the cheeks. She didn't know what to say. She had always known Riku was a bit of a mean person, but she never thought he'd take a jab at her. Tidus and Wakka who were present when it happened laughed as well. Keri crossed her arms over her chest, trying to conceal her large bust and turned to run away in shame. Just then she bumped into Jade.

"What's going on here?" the girl asked, eyes showing a hint of worry.

"My button popped off..." Keri explained in a pained voice, "And Riku, he called me fat!" Jade's expression changed from worry to rage. Keri knew Jade was very protective of her sisters and those close to her. In spite of her ojou exterior, Jade had rather violent tendencies. Keri watched as Jade calmed her expression and walked over a few paces to where Riku stood smirking in triumph. Without warning, she delivered him a swift slap to the face.

"Shame on you," she said with a glare, "Apologize to her." Keri had never seen Jade so angry, but was grateful that Riku got what he deserved. Riku fixed Jade with a hateful expression, hands clenched into fists. The redhead worried what he might do to her; but nothing occurred. Instead he walked over to her and mumbled some sort of apology and sauntered off.

"Here," Jade handed Keri her blazer, "We'll get you bigger shirts later okay?" Keri smiled in relief. She didn't know what she'd do without her friends. That knowledge secretly scared her. Keri didn't know how she would react if her friends weren't around to stick up for her or give her advice. In a way she was a little overly dependent on them-not that they minded or noticed. She couldn't help but feel like a burden to her friends. They were all she had.

**Jade:**

Growing up for Jade was...disappointing. She grew taller and kind of kept growing. She ended up being tall and skinny, not exactly favorable. Most girls admired her because she didn't get fat. Jade however saw this differently. She felt her lack of curves were unfeminine and frequently made up for it by dressing in overtly girly fashion.

She frequently wore blue hair decs, be they ribbons, shells, barrettes, or feathers. She always wore skirts for her uniform. Of course, she came across as very cute to some. Nobody thought of her as boyish or said a word about her lack of curves, but it still bothered her. She kept this fear to herself.

Another drawback to being tall was her occasional clumsiness. Being unused to her height caused her to trip over her feet, much to her chagrin. When she tried doing gymnastics, her height became an obsticle. Instead she switched to yoga and other sports.

She discovered she was a bit of a hothead. She was quite moody and was subject to swings, most of which were unnoticible to the public. That was until the day she slapped Riku in the face for making fun of Keri. Her response surprised her and she had to admit it was scary when Riku was glaring at her with those eyes that were neither blue nor green. But when he saw that she didn't flinch or bat an eye, he backed down.

He stayed clear of her from then on. Guys were kind of scared of her, especially since she was taller than most of them. Selphie assured her it was nothing to get worked up about. The trouble would end soon.

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L/N: I apologize for the shortness of this chapter. I have a test to study for and another paper I'm supposed to be writing. 0.0

I just like writing fanfiction more sometimes. I might start drawing some fanart for this fanfic...*shifty eyes*


	3. No Luck

**DISCLAIMER**: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights belong to their respective owners, namely Disney and Square Enix. Of course you already knew that. Ask yourself, if this chick really owned any of these companies, would she be writing fan fiction? Probably not! Next chapter is up! Enjoy!

* * *

The three girls found themselves spending more and more time at Destiny Islands as the school year continued. The year-around summer of the island made it a pleasant happy place to hang out, especially on the weekends. As the school year came to a close, everyone prepared to drop everything to have fun in the sun. Final Exams were finished and the kids were free to do as they wished.

Jade spent her time sparing with the guys. They seemed to accept her now. Keri and Rayne divided their time between collecting shells and playing in the sand. During the day they played and evenings just before things got dark, they would sit on the pier overlooking the ocean. It was there that Riku announced his idea.

"You know, there must be other worlds out there," he said, leaning up against the giant bent palm tree. No one was surprised at this. He talked about it often, when he did talk that was. "If it wasn't for Kairi, I wouldn't have even thought about the world outside."

"Did you think we were living in some sort of city in a bottle?" Rayne asked. She sat perched on Riku's left side, calmly stroking his hair. She knew Riku shared her curiosity about other worlds. Riku knew she was half-joking. Their world was huge. Many places could be visited. But it was only a fraction of what else was out there. Riku turned to her and gave a small smile.

"Of course not. I just feel like it's high time we went and saw what was out there." the silver haired boy tilted his face to the setting sun, a cool serene look graced his face.

Keri thought about what he had said. She had little concerns other than her day to day living and hadn't given other worlds a single thought. How was this to be? She stole a glance at Kairi who was sitting next to Sora. She remembered hearing the story of how Kairi arrived on the island during a meteor shower just before she moved there. She had wanted to ask Kairi about it out of curiosity, but after Kairi's mean remarks to her, she backed off and let it go.

"Riku is right, we should do it while we can," Sora quipped after a long pause. "There's more to everything." He wrapped an arm around Kairi who looked rather content.

"And I want to see it." Riku finished.

...

The next day, the raft project began. Everyone was helping out except for Sora who often fell asleep on the job. They gathered supplies, chopping, sawing, and building. Riku seemed to be obsessed with the idea of building the raft. He was anal about the details and frequently made corrections. Even Rayne thought him to be a little off. But Riku was always like that. Even though he had lived on the island all his life, there was always something about him that made people fear or love him.

He was mysterious even though everyone knew him. He was social, talkative, and competitive just like every boy out there. Maybe it was his eyes that set him apart from the rest. Rayne loved him though. Her love was a kind of blind devotion that was either legendary or insane. Riku accepted her devotion and seemed to enjoy her company. They were both a part of their own secret world with a language nobody seemed to understand. What went on between those two was nobody's guess.

Keri found Sora sleeping in the sand and dumped a bucket of water on him.

"W-w-wspppth!" he sputtered with a start, "What'd I do?" he shouted, pretending to be upset.

"Get up you lazy bum!" Kairi shouted a few paces away. Sora smiled at the two girls and took Keri's outstretched hand and she helped him to his feet. All three of them ran to the raft that was still in progress. Rayne, Jade, and Riku were tying the logs together.

"About time you woke up!" Riku said with a stern look that quickly gave way to a playful smirk. Sora gave a nervous laugh and smiled, scratching the back of his head.

"Did I?" he said sheepishly. Everyone laughed at him. They all knew he was a lazy daydreamer after all.

"We're about to go on lunch break, what do you all want?" Rayne said standing up and stretching her back.

"Let's get sandwiches," Jade said instantly. Everyone agreed unanimously. Sandwiches weren't a bad idea for a day like this. While everyone ran off to their boats, Jade was held back by Sora unexpectedly.. "What is it?" Jade asked. Sora rarely talked to her. She gave him a confused look. It wasn't a big deal for her, just a little odd.

"Jade...I..." he began slowly, unsure of what to say, "I had a dream last night, you were in it..." his voice trailed off. Jade felt her eyebrows scrunch up in curiosity.

"Huh?" she managed to get out.

"You were in it. I saw you standing on the top of the rocks over there. Then you vanished," he looked at her with his blue eyes. His face was so serious, it was scary. Jade was out of words. Why was he telling her this?

"W-we'd better get going," she said quickly, pushing the matter under the rug.

"

**Day 3:**

"Stay away from Sora," Kairi said, glaring at Keri. The other girl sighed in frustration. Was Kairi still stuck on this after all the time that had passed?

"What's your problem?" Keri all but growled in exasperation, "You never shut up about this!"

"I like him and I don't want you to have him!" Kairi blurted. Did she really view Keri as competition? Since when as anything ever a contest? This was beyond petty.

"Okay, good for you. Everyone already knew that. Did you tell him?" Keri asked. Kairi's face softened instantly in deep shock. Apparently she hadn't thought of that before. Keri, who was satisfied to get the other girl to shut her mouth, walked away. Was that all that Kairi hated her for? If so, that was the most childish thing she had ever heard of.

Jade couldn't get Sora had said out of her mind. She had managed to cover up the slowness with some strange story she made up off the top of her head. For some reason the whole thing was rather disturbing. For one, someone had a dream about her. Two, it wasn't someone she was close to. She realized how little she knew about Sora. She had been assuming he was just a kid, nothing more. The epiphany made her feel superficial. How well did she know anyone?

"Jade, did you hear me?" Rayne's voice sounded in her head.

"Eh?" she snapped back to the present. Rayne was giving her this pleading look. "What is it?" Rayne sighed and tugged on her own ponytail.

"I really love Riku. You think we will stay together?" Rayne asked in an absurdly simple manner. Jade already knew this, so did pretty much everyone else. Why was her best friend asking this question? For a moment Rayne seemed normal. Not enchanted or possessed. She was the friend she knew before she was enamoured with Riku.

"Stay together? After what?" Jade asked. Where was this coming from? Jade didn't like Riku, not much anymore. Her approval rating was dropping each day since middle school. It was as if something had awakened inside him. Maybe it was his silvery hair. Maybe it was his eyes that were neither blue nor green. She couldn't be sure. They had never really talked to each other. She knew Riku about as well as she knew Sora. To her credit, Tidus told her that he was a hard guy to understand. Not even Kairi "got him".

She saw Rayne's saddened expression and apologized, "I'm sorry. I'm sure you guys will be just fine."

...

Rayne looked at Jade. The tall girl crossed her arms and leaned against a boulder. How could she do that? Just be so calm about something like this? Jade had always been abnormally chill for a person with so much personality.

She wanted to be with Riku. She didn't know exactly "why" she liked him. They knew each other, shared dreams, talked often. He was like her. Wasn't that enough? Lately, she felt that she might be a bit crazy. Ever since she met Riku, he was all she thought about. She rarely thought about anything else. Spending time with her sisters helped her come back to reality. But the moment she was alone, she started thinking about him again.

**Corrosion:**

No one could remember what time the storm began. Violent flashes of lightning and peals of thunder went back and between the skies and the ears of the people. everywhere.

All three girls awoke from their slumber with a start. In their separate locations they could see the island from their windows. Each one of them felt a prompting from the island itself. Destiny was calling them. They left their beds without question, not even realizing what was going on.

Keri arrived first. Rain soaked through her shirt and pants, but she didn't care. She didn't know what she was looking for. She assumed she was looking for the raft to make sure it was safe. Her vision was blinded by the rain and a great blast of wind knocked her down.

"Get up stupid!" came a familiar voice. She looked up, it was Kairi! The other girl took her by the hand dragged her to standing position. "Follow me!" she shouted, tugging on Keri's hand. She followed blindly as Kairi led them to The Secret Place. "We should be safe here," Kairi said bluntly, "I came here to check on the raft, I didn't expect to see you here."

"Well sorry that I care," Keri sniffed as she looked around. It was hard to see in the cave but she could make out a few details along with the giant wood "door" that had been there since anyone could remember. Keri figured it was just a decoration that didn't lead to anywhere.

"What's with this weather?" Kairi asked, probably more to herself than to anyone else, "Maybe that door had been opened." Keri bit her tongue to keep herself from remarking.

'Door?' she thought, 'What door?' she looked at the big slab of wood mounted against the stones and its elaborate carvings. "You mean this door?" she said out loud, "it's just a wall of wood-" she reached out to touch it.

"Wait!" Kairi shouted, "don't touch-" but it was too late. The seemingly wooden door liquefied and jumped out, grabbing her hand and wrist and began to slowly pull her into itself. Keri and Kairi both screamed in horror. Keri tried to take her arm back, pulling frantically.

"No!" Kairi shouted, grabbing Keri's free arm and pulling with all her might. It was futile, both girls were fighting with all they had, but the door continued to pull Keri closer. Keri began to realize that the door was going to take her no matter what they did.

"Kairi, it's okay," Keri said sadly, resigning herself to her fate.

"No! It's not okay!" Kairi screamed in retaliation, "It's not okay!" Tears were in her eyes. This was the first time Keri had seen her cry. This was Kairi, the girl who hated Keri for everything she was, crying for her. What was the change of heart? Kairi wanted to save her, but couldn't. Keri felt the door wrap around her left leg. The other girl looked up at her with tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry," she whimpered, "I'm sorry I can't save you. I'm sorry for everything. I didn't-I'm a Keyblade Wielder! WHY!?" she screamed, burying her face in her hands.

"I know you can wield the Keyblade, so can I," Keri told her softly, "It'll be alright," she said as the last of her disappeared. Kairi looked up. Keri was gone. Her thalassa shell necklace had fallen to the ground and was all that remained.

...

Rayne had just made it to the Island's edge. Keri's boat was there, but no Keri. She ran as fast as she could on the wet sand, sliding and slipping as the surface was unstable. She looked to the horizon to see a giant vortex of purple light, sucking things into itself. This wasn't an ordinary storm, she realized. This colossal thing was not something found in nature. It was devouring the ocean, the land, the sky, everything. She ran towards the group of palm trees on the pier. She ran up to it to get a better look at the island.

"Rayne!" Riku's voice sounded. SHe turned to see him standing a few paces behind her. She ran up to him and threw her arms around him.

"Riku!" she cried into his chest, "Where's Keri?! Have you seen her?!"She looked up when he didn't respond. He was staring back at her. His eyes were blank. This wasn't Riku. She pushed the creature away. Whatever he was, he looked like the boy she loved, but he wasn't.

Suddenly she felt herself sinking. She looked down in horror to see herself being sucked into a pool of darkness. As if alive, wisps of dark matter came up from it, wrapping itself around her legs. She began to scream in fear, her voice piercing the darkness.

Fear turned to straight terror as she sank into the deep void below. Tears sprung to her eyes as she struggled in maddened fear against the void. The more she struggled, the more she stuck. The Riku figure stood staring at her, no expression. No evil grin or laugh. No life was in his eyes. Was he even real?

"Help me!" she cried into the air, but her voice was drowned out by the wind and the waves. "I don't want to die," she whispered to nobody, "Help."

...

Jade heard Rayne's scream and panic seized her heart. She ran as fast as she could to where the sound came from but found nothing. No trace of her golden haired friend except for her thalassa shell necklace. Jade picked it up and held it tightly, along with Keri's that she found in the sand. The salt water and howling wind stung her face. Her friends were gone.

She stood on the pier, discovering nothing. There was no trace of anyone. There were several boats at the dock, and no trace of their owners. Suddenly she saw Riku running towards her from the dock. "Riku!" she shouted as he got closer.

"Jade! The door!" It's been opened!" he shouted, rain plastering his hair to his face.

"What door?" she asked. He knew something she didn't. The mysterious boy who played aloof and cool must have had some sort of prior knowledge to this whole thing.

"Doesn't matter, you don't know," he said walking past her, brushing her aside. Jade followed him towards the edge of the rotunda that met the water's edge, questions forming in her mind. They stood on the edge, overlooking the giant vortex that was devouring their world.

"What don't I know Riku? You know something about this don't you?" Jade asked pointedly. She had to be direct. The boy turned to her with an expression she didn't trust.

"The door in the Secret Place, it's open. The world has been connected to the Darkness." he replied as if in satisfaction. Jade took a step back in horror and nearly slipped off the edge into the waters below. In one swift movement he caught her by the arm and pulled her to himself.

Jade looked up to thank him, in spite of her cringing as he touched her. She was met with his burning glare that made her feel like he was looking through her. She couldn't say a word. She felt like there was a lump in her throat keeping all her words back.

"You know Jade," he said in a low and lecherous voice, caressing her face gently, "I've always thought you were kind of cute." He traced her mouth with a finger. "Too bad you were such a bitch," he said softly as he brought his lips to hers.

The kiss was numbing and cold. Jade was frozen in shock and fear. She had no idea he was like this. What had he done to Rayne? Did he treat her like this? Was this the real side of the boy she went to school with? She was right to have distrusted him. She could only stare helplessly into his eyes. She hated his eyes. As if pleased by her reaction, a smile crawled across his face. He was a predator with his prey.

"I always wanted to have my first kiss with you," he said casually, running his hand across her stomach as he spoke. He seemed to enjoy the way she cringed, unable to do anything against him. "We'll go farther next time", he whispered as he pushed her into the waters below.

Jade felt the sting as she made impact with the water. She was stunned beyond belief. Her body was still frozen, unable to swim against the waves that pulled her under. The water rushed into her nose and mouth, burning her senses. Darkness and cold began to wrap around as she slowly began to drown.

* * *

**L/N:** I know this chapter will need some reworking. I had already revised it from the hard copy I had written out earlier. So please forgive me and bear with it for the sake of story. If you have any suggestions please PM me at your discretion. Please review and add to your faves! And no, the story does not end here! Our heroines will return in the next chapter!


	4. Making Luck

Sora felt like he was falling a lot these days. From dreams to real life. he was seperated from all his friends and everything he had everything he knew. He woke up in Traverse Town, not knowing how he got there. He remembered there was Riku who wasn't afraid of the Darkness, Kairi who had vanished, and the three girls he knew were gone.

He had seen Jade disappear from the peak just like his dream had told him. He didn't understand what he had meant when he told her about it. She was confused, not knowing why he had such a dream and why she was in it. He hoped he didn't freak her out. She didn't seem freaked out though.

He snapped back to the present, conversing with Leon, Yuffie, and Aerith. He had me Donald and Goofy, a dog and a duck who could talk and fight. They had quickly become friends, much to his relief and they agreed to help him find his friends. He wasn't sure about Keri, Rayne, or Jade because he had only seen Riku and Kairi on the Island. And then he had seen Jade vanish without a trace.

"I wonder where they are now?" he murmured to himself.

"Where who are?" Aerith asked kindly. Sora suddenly realized he had spaced out and quickly covered for himself.

"Just my friends," Sora replied with a small smile, "You know, I told you all about it earlier. I just can't stop thinking about them." He sat back in his chair. It wasn't the whole truth. In all actuality he had a lot of people he was thinking about. His whole world had vanished, not knowing where they went. Was his mother consumed by the darkness? The implications were astounding as he thought more about it. His whole world was gone and everyone was likely dead.

He bit his lip ad tried to hold back tears. Why did he have to be the Key? Why did he survive while everyone was gone? That night as he went to sleep he let the tears fall on his pillow and tried his hardest to muffle the sound. He finally decided he had to get up and go somewhere. He carefully snuck out of the bedroom that DOnald, Goofy and him shared and sat in the living room. There he let his tears fall freely, still trying to make as little noise as possible.

"Sora?" Aerith whispered coming downstairs. She was in her nightgown and jacket and held a candle The boy wiped his nose with the back of his hand.

"Yes?" he said, his voice cracking. The young woman walked into the room and sat beside him.

"What's wrong?" she asked, wiping his face with a handkerchief.

"It's everything," he said between sobs, "This is too much, everyone is gone. I'm still alive. I miss my home, I want it all back!" Aerith took him in her arms and let him cry on her lap. She didn't know what to say right then and there. He had lost just like she did. And if she were being honest with herself, which she often was, she'd say she hadn't gotten over anything either. The darkness was robbing everyone of their peace, love, and joy. Nobody was prepared for this in the least, and so many people were suffering as a result-especially the innocents.

And this boy with a Keyblade was the Key to saving more people than he could ever imagine. Even with all this strength inside him, he was still just a boy. Why was he chosen? It was likely he'd never know and neither would she. As best she could, she patted his head and sang softly to him until he fell asleep. One he was softly snoring, she blew out the candle and covered him with a blanket. She managed to fit another one to cover herself with as she nodded off to sleep, with his head on her lap.

**Keri:**

The door swallowing her wasn't as scary as she imagined it to be. Kairi disappeared as she was pulled behind the door and darkness swallowed her. But it didn't stay dark for long. The darkness gave way to actual light. The wall had turned into stone and the ground had given way to grass. Keri noticed the light was brighter than usual and the atmosphere had changed from the damp Secret Place to clean fresh air of another town.

She turned around and noticed she definitely was not in...well, Destiny Islands. Speaking of which, what had happened to that place? She could hardly be sure. It seemed that the vortex was swallowing the island into itself. This must have meant...her thoughts trailed off as the fridge horror thawed. If the island got swallowed up that meant her friends were gone too, unless they escaped it somehow.

As for her, she wasn't sure if she was alive or dead. The town spread out below her. She was standing on the small knoll that lead to train tracks. The ground was mostly stone but there were trees about. Keri carefully made her way to the ground-level where the shops were at. No one looked at her crazy or seemed to really question why she was here. Nobody looked any different from the people in her area, so the culture wasn't that different. So she didn't have to worry about that. All she needed was a way to survive, just some food and shelter. But food first.

The signs in the area displayed odd jobs that were up for the day. She wrung her hands in anticipation. The jobs looked easy enough to complete. There was a moving service that required her to load boxes. That shouldn't be too hard. She ran as fast as she could to the designated street and found the man in charge.

"What do you want?" said the tall man through his cigar he was smoking. He was brawny and mean-looking. Keri felt a bit of fear crawl all over her, but she pressed on.

"I saw your sign for hire and I want the job!" she said as firmly as possible, trying to make her face serious. The man laughed at her.

"You've gotta be kidding me! A girl like you!" he snorted a laugh and shooed her away with his hand, "You're better off working as a maid or somethin'. Get outta here kid." Keri felt defeated. She really needed the job! The pay from maid services was peanuts to this! She needed a better occupation.

"I need this job sir! My parents kicked me out and this job is the only thing that'll keep me off the streets!" she stated as she crossed her arms. He didn't seem to have much sympathy for her. He was definitely looking for a bigger man for hire, but only two other guys showed up and he needed three. Unwillingly he let Keri in on the job. But he made her wear some overalls that seemed to be about a size too big. "Can't have you lookin' priss while we're working," he said gruffly. Keri stuffed as much of her hair under her cap as she could manage. Some of the bright red pieces fell out, but the didn't obstruct her work.

About four straight hours passed before she got a single break. She sat with the unknown guys who munched on sandwiches and went right back to work. Thank goodness it was just a job for a day. After all the work was done, her total injuries included:

-10 stubbed toes

-3 splinters

-a bruised thigh

-sunburn

-a cut on her right hand

-and sore boobs (this happens when you have giant boxes pressed against your cleavage)

At least she had the money. That was one thing to be happy about. Lodging was reasonably priced and didn't break her budget. She supposed she could manage to live here comfortably for a few days before it all ran out. Now she had time to think about what had happened. Her mind replayed the last day or so. Nothing was unusual about that day. And suddenly, a night storm sprung out of nowhere. She was with Kairi and she had said something about a door being open, she wasn't even aware of a door that was in there. How did Kairi know the door was evil? Did Kairi know the door was evil or at least malevolent?

There were going to be a lot of unanswered questions. Keri sighed and lay back on her neatly made hotel bed. It definitely wasn't home. She wanted her friends to be with her. It was bad enough she lost her charm necklace Jade had made her. She didn't have any photos to look at either. Now she was lost in a town she wasn't familiar with. It was called Twilight Town she saw from the fliers.

At first she had wondered about the name of the city, but someone had told her it was because the sun never went down. It was never night time there. Sure enough the twilight always gave way to the dawn, no moon could be seen as far as she was concerned. Well, at least she didn't have to worry about heartless yet. She had developed a fear of the dark, which was awful. Going into closets was a pain as she always tried to keep the door open behind her.

She began to wonder if she was doomed to stay here forever. A week had passed and she was living an almost-comfortable life in the town. She still hadn't bothered making friends yet and the loneliness was starting to get to her. Perhaps now was a good time? She looked out the window at the town below. Not much seemed to be going on. It might be a good day for a walk.

Keri laced up her boots and began to walk around town. A few people recognized her from her work and smiled, saying well-wishing greetings she was familiar with. It wasn't until she walked into the Sandlot that things began to get interesting, in a pretty good way.

* * *

"Shut up Blondie and fight me!" a rough looking teen with shouted as he pointed a Struggle Bat in the younger guy's direction. The perp was tall and wore a white duster coat and a black beanie cap on his head. Keri could see strips of blonde hair peeking out around the edges. The other guy was on the ground, obviously in pain. What did he do to him?

"No fair, you cheated Seifer!" A brown haired girl shouted in protest.

"Silence!" A seemingly frail girl with white hair and red eyes glared at the other one. This scene did not look good. Keri stepped in.

"Stop! Can't you see he's hurt?" She shouted. Seifer whirled around and fixed her with a glare. Keri came out from under the pass and into the light, walking with her head held high. This guy was no different than Riku, but he looked a bit meaner. _Okay, I can do this. Just remember what Jade taught you. What would Jade do? _"You've been having too much fun, leave him alone." She said calmly once she was close enough. He smelled of sweat and spice, the kind the guys back at home wore. The smell made her a tad sick.

"This isn't your business. Get lost Ginger," Seifer said dully, disinterested in dealing with the girl. At first Keri was insulted. At her old school, no one ever called her that, especially with Jade or Rayne around. Even then, no one would dare utter the word "ginger" unless they were referring to spices. Then, when he saw that she didn't respond, he turned his back on her to get back to his victim who was now standing.

Suddenly, Keri didn't like being ignored.

"I do believe I asked you to stop," she said with an edge to her voice. It scared her, the way she responded. Normally she'd let it go, but now...that wasn't cutting it. She wasn't pleased in the least. The blonde haired bruiser turned to her with an arrogant expression, but she didn't let him speak. "Back off," she growled. Of course he wasn't intimidated, but he looked at her with amusement.

"And you're going to stop me?" he sneered coming closer, swinging his bat over his shoulder. Keri took a moment to assess the situation. Seifer wasn't going to back down and didn't care about the well-being of others. He was rude to her and called her a name she didn't like. As she was going through all the possible ways to take this guy on, she suddenly wished she had spent more time building her moral code. _Okay Keri, here goes __nothing!_

Without saying a word, she swiftly kicked him in the balls and watched him fall to the ground, dropping his bat. She picked it up and gave him a few swift blows to the head. And for good measure, she pulled his jacket over his head. She quickly backed off towards the brunette girl lest he catch her by the ankle. Not gloating was one of the best lessons Jade had taught her. The white-haired girl had already run over to see if Seifer was okay.

"Wow...you were..." the girl began, startling Keri. She didn't think the girl would talk to her. "You were awesome!" she exclaimed with joy, grabbing Keri's hand.

"Um...just a little bit," Keri replied nervously. Isolation was not a good thing for her social life. At least she remembered the basics. She forced a nervous grin.

"Yeah, she kind of saved my ass," another voice came suddenly. Both girls turned to see a limping blond-haired boy being supported by a husky dark-haired boy. "We'd better get outta here."

"You want to come with us?" the girl asked. Keri sighed in relief. She might just have friends after all!

"I'd love to!" she said with a smile.


	5. You are Luck

**L/N: **Finally I got a chapter put up! It only took me how long? Haha. I was trying to figure out what to write about Jade's adventure and this was what I came up with.

* * *

Jade never had a reason to fear water, until now. The feeling of drowning is a terrible one. The isolation, knowing no one would help her, made her despair in her heart. This was where it all was going to end. Or so she thought. The cold suddenly became warm and the darkness was pierced by a soft light that she hadn't seen before. Before she could appreciate any of this her eyes fluttered shut in the water, as if lulled to sleep. She didn't even realize she wasn't breathing.

...

**Cradle of Light:**

Apparently it wasn't her time yet. Jade slowly awoke to being bathed in light. Glowing waves surrounded her body, leaving her with delightfully warm pulses going through her. Maybe this was a bit of Heaven? She wondered to herself. It was at this point she may have fallen asleep.

To her surprise she wasn't dreaming of anything. She woke up slowly, as if she had been sleeping for a long time. Her head felt heavy and seemed to sink back onto something soft whenever she got tired. She never felt so tired in her life. Was it the struggle? Or was something slowly consuming her. Jade felt her eyelids grow so heavy she couldn't even keep them open.

She could feel something seep inside her and follow along every inch of her body. She couldn't resist it-whatever it was. It was going to have its way with her. She could see blinding light behind her eyelids...what did this mean? Suddenly, all thought process ceased.

...

Jade awoke again with the sudden need to breathe. It wasn't urgent like when she was drowning. It was more like...she needed to do something...like something important was about to happen. Her strength was returning in little bits and pieces. She began to move about. She was unable to see where she was, but she felt the warmth just as strong as before. She stretched her arms and legs , discovering there was a barrier surrounding her she began to push against it.

The more she struggled, the more it moved. She could hear cracking and see light coming in through them. _Come on Jade, you can do it! Just a little more!_ She urged herself to keep going. The need to breathe was imminent. At last, the barrier fell away and Jade fell out with it. She suddenly felt a little cold and realized she was covered in a light blue fluid.

"Did I just hatch out of an egg?" she asked aloud looking behind her. The white shell of her prison was broken for sure. Some larger pieces still stood up, their jagged edges coated in blue slimy fluid. She slowly stood up and began to stretch her muscles. They didn't seem to be too sore, in fact they were rather fresh. She felt better than before. It was strange.

"Don't consider it so much of a hatching...it's more like being rebirther," a voice said. Jade looked behind her to see a lady in white walking up to her. Her dress as remarkably white with lovely feather accents to it. She seemed to glow as well. She seemed friendly, and didn't mean her harm. Jade relaxed.

"Would you please tell me what's going on here?" she asked softly. "What's your name?"

"Follow me, I'll explain everything." the woman said as she turned and walked along a path that lead to another building. Jade followed her, staying to her right. She took the time to observe the place at hand. It was very bright, the sky was a pale pure blue and there was grass and flowers everywhere. She looked back to her birthing site and noticed it was in a white stone circle with blue accents. As if she hadn't noticed it before, there were feathers strewn about, floating in midair.

Where was this place?

She was lead to a building where another lady stood as if waiting for her. "Another young one birthed?" she asked. As they got closer she could see the lady's dark hair that covered half her face and the braided bun on top of her head. She wore what seemed like a white dress with white fur trim.

"Yes Lulu, another young one," the other woman replied. "And we've got some explaining to do," she said matter-of-factly. She instructed Jade to sit at a table that had some soup ad bread and began to explain things.

"I am Yuna and this is Lulu, we're Keepers of the Light," Yuna ran a hand through her short brown hair and continued. "Long ago there were only two Keepers, Lulu and I. Until recently, we were all that were needed. But since everyone began fighting over the Light, more and more protectors were needed. The Light belongs to everyone, but some people don't see it that way. The Light itself has been choosing its protectors and keepers. Keyblade wielders are one version, using its powers to destroy heartless and return hearts to their owners. Keepers like Lulu and I are defenders, making sure the Darkness stays at bay and healing other people from corruption."

Yuna took a moment to pause. Jade kept track of everything she was saying. Did this mean she was a Keeper now? Lulu took her cue and continued.

"I know your world was swallowed by Darkness and you were betrayed by someone who should have been your friend. I can assure you, your friends are safe, but not all will be for long." She looked Jade in the eye, her face stoic. Jade could feel a shiver going down her spine, what else did she know about?

"What else do you know?" Jade set down her spoon and listened more intently. It seemed her job was going to be far more important than she realized. This was going to go beyond just saving her friends and restoring her home.

"We know the Light saved you from drowning. This could be Destiny on your part or you were saved by chance. This you can't know for sure. You're the eighth Keeper to be born so far, I highly doubt you'll be the last. You have much to learn in a short period of time and most of it you'll have to learn on your own." Lulu stood up and left the room through the giant twin doors on the other side.

"What she means is, we can't give you all the proper training you'll need. Fortunately, you aren't the only one who's going through this, I promise you," Yuna explained. "Your job will be to go about curing those you find who are corrupted by the Darkness. These people are the ones who spawn very strong heartless. What happens is, the Darkness festers and grows until it is mature enough to devour its host. You'll know exactly what to do when the time comes. Trust me."

Just then Lulu returned with a white coat and dress, a charm necklace, a small bag, and a bottle with blue fluid. "Okay, this is your gear," she said sounding a lot like her coach at school. "This is your dress, it doesn't serve too big of a purpose, just puts people at ease and makes you look good. This coat is to shield you from people's eyes. Nobody will know you're there unless you want them to. It's also machine washable." Lulu held up the bag, "This is your-ahem-bag of holding. It can carry anything you want in it and it weighs pretty much nothing. You could stick one of your friends in there if you pleased. The bottle should only be opened in case of emergency. This necklace is your weapon. You'll find out soon enough."

Jade put on her dress and found it functional and fashionable at the same time. She could move easily and shoes were perfect for travel. "Oh yeah, one more thing," Lulu said as if in afterthought and gave Jade a serious slap on the back.

"OWWWW!" she gave out a shriek and her back stung deeply. Her back tingled and she felt two knots on her shoulders burst. A flapping sound could be heard and some white feathers fell in front of her.

"There you go!" Yuna said excitedly, "All set!" Jade looked to her right and left and saw the great wings that had sprouted from her shoulders.

"This is part of the deal huh?" Jade said with a smile, "Job accepted."

* * *

**Yes I know I've had Lulu and Yuna make cameos. I didn't want to create original characters, so I used what Final Fantasy Characters I had available. I know Yuna is in the series (albeit game 2) but Lulu is extra. You'll see some more pop up, but don't worry, they won't ruin the plot. I created the Keepers to go along with the Keyblade Wielders. They aren't canon but I thought they'd make a good addition to the story.**


	6. Corrupted Luck

**L/N: **Finally we see what happens to Rayne. I don't own Kingdom Hearts, only my OC's. Any other cameos belong to their respective owners.

* * *

**Cradle of Darkness:**

If it was possible to get darker than black, Rayne would have guessed this was it. Unlike her friends she wasn't afraid of the darkness, but but that didn't mean she was immune to the element of fear itself. She felt herself falling down down down into the black pit that had carried her with no end in sight-literally.

At some point along the way she had fallen asleep somehow. She didn't have pleasant dreams. There weren't dreams of darkness itself, but the things that hid inside it. The true nature of the people she thought she knew. There was isolation, abandonment, and abuse. She could see her friends turning against her, telling her she was annoying and wishing she'd just go away or die. She could hear this being replayed over and over.

"What are you doing here?" Jade asked scornfully. It wasn't the same Jade she knew. This Jade had darker eyes and a painfully beautiful features. She was darker than her former self.

"What?" Rayne felt herself replying.

"It's her again?" Keri's voice rang out behind her. Keri was more slender and her hair was blood red contrasted by pure white skin. Her blue eyes pierced through Rayne's body as she approached. "Didn't we tell you to leave yesterday?" it was definitely Keri's voice.

"She doesn't get it Sister," Jade stepped in and grabbed Rayne by her hair, "We told her we were tired of her stupid antics and selfish behavior." As she said this she tugged hard on Rayne's golden locks and yanked her around. The poor girl let out a yelp of pain, begging her to stop. Didn't they recognize her? Why were they doing this?

"Stop!" she cried, "How was I selfish? I'm sorry!" Jade stopped and looked at her curiously, deeply annoyed by her crying.

"You wanna know why you're so selfish? Huh?" Keri spat, grabbing onto Rayne's hair, "I'll tell you. It's because of your stupid obsession with Riku. All you ever do is talk about him and drag us along in your plans to be with him!" With that Keri threw her to the ground.

"You know what happened to Keri? Riku made fun of her! And did you believe her? NO! You didn't! You know what he did to me? He cornered me in the girl's locker room and shoved his fingers up my vag!" Jade growled, clearly angry, "Is he your prince now?" Rayne felt tears welling up in her eyes. Was she really that selfish? Did those things really happen? No they didn't! Those weren't the real Keri or Jade. Jade was patient and Keri was loving. They were her sisters! They wouldn't treat her like that would they?

Was Riku really a bad person? She wondered. Did he really do those things to Keri and Jade? She imagined what could've happened to them. Was she really so blind she couldn't see what was going on? She thought she had tried her best to be a good friend. She remembered birthdays, holidays, and sent Get Well cards. Wasn't she a good friend? She wasn't selfish was she? No, she was a kind good person!

Suddenly, the scene repeated itself. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again. It repeated itself again...

...

Rayne was suddenly jolted awake into another reality. What was happening now? She looked around and could barely see anything. What was going on? She was beyond delirious. How long had those images been going in her mind? She wasn't even sure if they were really images. There was no sense of time as keeping track proved impossible and useless. Eventually time had ended altogether.

She couldn't think or wonder. Her mind...what mind? There didn't seem to be much left if there was anything left that is.

...

A figure walked into the dark room, long silver hair and pale skin, deep masculine features graced his frame. His Mako enhanced eyes looked around at the large human-sized eggs in the room. Each of them had a person in it. Every single person was lost to the Darkness, but their hearts were not taken. Blue-green light pulsed around the shells and reflected off the sky above them. Which one would be his? He wondered as he peered into each egg. The face of a small blonde girl girl came to view. She was sleeping, but not well. Her face contorted in fear and sadness and then anger. He could see her painful dreams that were brought about by the Darkness.

Rejection. Isolation. Abuse. Just the perfect combination to make the corruption easier. He pulled out an orb glowing blue-green and smiled without mirth. Mako in its purest form, how hard he had worked to get a strand of it this powerful and perfect! He took the orb and pushed it into the shell's surface where it was absorbed and made the whole case glow brightly.

The egg became soft and began to melt, the girl came into view. Her blood veins glowed softly with the Mako inside her, changing her, corrupting her. It brought about the worst of her memories and amplifying them to horrifying proportions and distorting the better memories by twisting them and making them painful. He reached out and caught the girl who was falling due to lack of strength. He admired her naked form and sleeping frame. She would have to wake up sometime soon.


End file.
